Does anyone know where you can buy Gigantes beans? Tried looking on web but only source I could find only supply a pallet load ( last a couple of lifetimes).
We don't have any greek supermarkets in Cornwall unfortunately..............
We have found some already cooked in tomato sauce in small jars from Tesco and Sainsburys but are looking for packs of dried variety so we can make our own recipes....

We had a Greek day yesterday at home,(Saturday) with homemade Kleftiko, Stifado, home made Cheese pies and Scordallia. Also Gigantes Beans which were bought in our local Tesco Store here in Glasgow,priced £1.25 per tin. They are in tomato sauce and are no different to those served in restaurants in the resort. Tesco also sell Dolmades and Meat Balls which are the real McCoy.The same tins are also available in most supermarkets on the island. Lovely crusty bread to soak up the sauce...hmmmmm...first of the Beans then the Stifado. Then an evening of viewing tapes of past holidays, reminiscing about places and people,(some no longer with us), a lot of laughs and a few tears )...all washed down with a few Ouzo or Metaxa sherbets.The night was a rehearsal for our visit in September.

So forget the barb-q's in this wash out summer and get into the Greek mentality....even if only for a few hours !!!

That sounds a smashing night - and it will all taste so much better in September! The real thing in the real place!

I tried to get the gigantes beans once, and was told there was only one shop in the UK that sold them - in London - and they didn't do online sales. Said they hoped to start this summer. Now I can't remember who they were!!!!

Hi toulky, try this recipe for yigantes.
you need, 8ozs butter beans[soak overnight]
olive oil to fry.
2 large onions
2 cloves of garlic
14 ozs tin chopped tomatoes
1-2 tbspoon tom. puree
1 tspoon origano
about 3/4 pint of water
salt & pepper
1 tbspoon of parsley to serve.
cover beans with water and boil for 15 mins., drain fry beans onions and garlic until golden brown, bung all these into a pan with the water and toms, then simmer for about 1 hr or more till tender, when serving sprinkle with parsley. you can add other herbs while simmering ie mixed herbs. it makes enough for about 4 big dishes, tip you will need a good size pan and frying pan, but the effort is well worth it, i got the recipe from a Greek friend years ago.
experiment with different herbs etc and believe me you will love them. i always put some Greek music on while making them makes me feel like im in Greece. cheers lorac

Quote: Originally posted by lorac on 10†August†2008
Hi toulky, try this recipe for yigantes.
you need, 8ozs butter beans[soak overnight]
olive oil to fry.
2 large onions
2 cloves of garlic
14 ozs tin chopped tomatoes
1-2 tbspoon tom. puree
1 tspoon origano
about 3/4 pint of water
salt & pepper
1 tbspoon of parsley to serve.
cover beans with water and boil for 15 mins., drain fry beans onions and garlic until golden brown, bung all these into a pan with the water and toms, then simmer for about 1 hr or more till tender, when serving sprinkle with parsley. you can add other herbs while simmering ie mixed herbs. it makes enough for about 4 big dishes, tip you will need a good size pan and frying pan, but the effort is well worth it, i got the recipe from a Greek friend years ago.
experiment with different herbs etc and believe me you will love them. i always put some Greek music on while making them makes me feel like im in Greece. cheers lorac

Thanks lorac will the recipe a try...........and we have some greek music to get the atmosphere.....in 29 days we will be there..........

Trouble with the dried ones is they shed their skins when you boil them, I would have a go at using maybe a tin of good quality butter beans and see how that goes. Have to say the small fluted tins of ready we buy in Waitrose are Greek through and through.(must have a look in Aldi's, no Lidls nearby) Love opening them, sniffing them, heating them to just above tepid/warm

Loracs recipe looks good as well, I always use a little dried dill as well as the other herbs

They definately sell them in Asda as I buy in my local store (they have a mediterranean section), although not always in stock. They also do them in sauce ready made up at £1.99 a jar and all you have to do is microwave.

Earlier on this thread, I said that I used Butter Beans for my Gigantes.

What I forgot to say that I put a good pinch of Bicarbonate of Soda into the soaking water. This ensures that the beans take on as much water as possible, no hard centers. After rinsing the beans, I put them into a Pyrex dish, cover with the sauce and mix. Pop into the oven and bake, cover with foil if required. Using this method you will find that the shells do not come off the beans.

I know that you want to make your own but if ever you feel like eating fantastic, bought, gigantes you must try Odysea. (Sainsbury's Special Selection). I have tried a number of tinned/jarred ones and these are the definitive ones. The sauce is actually better than anything which I eaten in Greece.

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